Day 8, Sunday, May 18, 1997
Because of my decision to stay in Flagstaff last night instead of the Grand Canyon South Rim, I added a sight to see that was not in my original trip plan. Camp Verde is about 50 miles south of Flagstaff and there were two attractions there that I thought I might be interested in.
So, bright and early, at 7:00AM, Tank and I headed south. I had loaded the Ford Explorer's CD player with classical music this morning, so Tank actually 'slept in'. He wasn't very talkative for the first couple of hours this morning.
Among the music for today was "The Marriage of Figaro" (Mozart), "Humoresque" (Dvorak) and "Rhapsody in Blue" (Gershwin). I don't care if Tank slept through it all, I enjoyed it.
Leaving Flagstaff on Interstate 17, I was interested to see the speed limit as 65 mph, up from the 55 mph I saw on state highways yesterday. Further down I17, the speed limit was then raised to 75 mph. I guess it makes sense.
Temperature was 71 degrees by 10AM, and I thought I was in for a warm day. By noon time, dark clouds rolled into the area together with thunder and lightning, but other than the briefest of sprinkles, I was not affected by the weather. Actually, it stayed cool and a bit breezy, so that was okay with me.
The Coconino National Forest continued south of Flagstaff, very green and very dense. Under the trees, spring was sprouting new green grass. For the first twenty or so miles, the forest blanketed the landscape at about 7000 feet above sea level. But then as I approached a town called Sedona, the highway dropped in elevation from 7000 to 6, to 5, and to 4000 feet. The landscape quickly changed from dense forest to desert.
I think people who have not travelled much in the west may have an image of Arizona being all desert. That is, one thinks of Tucson and/or Phoenix, and you think of a hot, dry area. But Flagstaff is quite high and very much a mountain city.
My first stop in the Verde Valley area was a visit to Montezuma's Castle. A strange name for what amounts to cliff dwellings. However it was determined, the story is that ancient farmers tilled the area and lived in these above-ground masonry dwellings. Basically, we're talking about large holes or caves in the side of a mountain, with masonry and rock to enclose the area. Condos of the day, I think I called them.
After viewing the cliff dwellings, I continued just a bit further south, into the town of Camp Verde. In this town is a state historical park called Fort Verde. The fort dates back to 1871-1881 during the period when this was a territory and not a state, and Indian affairs were a major concern of the day.
I was a bit disappointed with Fort Verde, because I had expectations of a fort with log walls enclosing a stockade of some kind. But, alas, all that remains is the commanding officer's home, the bachelor officer's quarters and the camp doctor's quarters. Sure, there is the parade ground but today this leaves much to a person's imagination to envision what life might have been like here in 1871. The contents of the remaining buildings was interesting because it did give you an idea of how basic life must have been like here in the desert.
As I was leaving Fort Verde, I had a pleasant surprise (as a tourist). Eight antique cars dating from 1900-1930 drove through down Main Street in Camp Verde. I watched to see where they went, thinking maybe I could get positioned to take some video pictures of their little parade.
The cars were part of the Orange County, California antique auto club, and they have driven to this area for an outing. Following behind was a van with a flat bed trailer and repair equipment should anything happen to one of the cars. These old cars are so light and fragile, my guess is that if something went wrong with one of them, you could just about lift it onto the flatbed trailer. It was nice seeing these old 'flivers' and their drivers.
I drove back to Flagstaff and stopped for a visit at the Riordan Mansion, another state historical park. The Riordan family were early business people who made their fortune with lumber and other industries. The mansion is a turn of the century log cabin structure and most interesting, not only in its architecture but the contents of the home illustrated how this affluent family lived in the desert.
I attempted to visit the Pioneer Museum in town, but of all things, it is closed on Sunday. I made the most of it by touring the property and taking pictures of the old logging trains. I stopped at the Museum of Northern Arizona as well, to view their exhibits dealing with geology and other subjects about this area.
I think the highlight of my day was my visit to the Walnut Canyon just east of Flagstaff. On first sight, the thing which impresses everyone is the depth of the canyon, the sculpture of the large, rocky sidewalls of the canyon, and the amount of growth in and around the canyon. But the attraction here is once again, cliff dwellings. I find it hard to imagine people living in what are basically caves or holes in the mountainside. Granted, they enclosed these caves or rocky overhangs with cut or gathered rock, and mortar, but it just doesn't strike me as a 'nice place to live'.
As with the Verde Valley, the people who inhabited these cliff dwellings farmed the surrounding area. The Spanish had a name for them, "Sinagua", meaning 'without water'. The park system does a fine job of maintaining trails without intruding on the original terrain.
It crossed my mind today that I'm getting a lot of exercise on this trip. Who needs a health club? I have done more stair climbs and endurance tests than I did at home! Handicapped people really cannot experience these areas because nature did not lay things out on a flat terrain. And pictures are not the same as seeing it for real.
Before returning to my motel late this afternoon, I took a drive on the historic Route 66. Before the advent of the Interstate highway system, Route 66 was 'the' major route for someone to travel from say the Chicago area to the west coast. For a number of years, there was a TV show, which tended to glamorize the old highway. And, lest I forget, there was the old song, 'get your kicks, on Route 66'.
It's been fun. Tomorrow I head east, seeing more Indian ruins, the Petrified Forest and some trading posts from the early, wild west.
Day 9, Monday, May 19, 1997
Today didn't go quite the way I expected, but then who wants to have a plan that accurate. The first thing on my agenda was an oil change for the Ford Explorer, and since I was in the big city of Flagstaff, I thought I would try the Ford dealer there.
So, Tank and I slept in a little bit. Ordinarily, I'm a very early riser. I guessed that the Ford dealer would open at 7:00 or 7:30 so I got up at 6:00AM. Well, I was out the door faster than expected because the motel had no hot water, so that shortened my morning ritual (no shower).
I stopped for a quick breakfast, and bought a newspaper to read in case I had to wait for the Ford place to open. Well, in the big city of Flagstaff, things don't get rolling until 8:00AM. By then, ordinarily, half my morning's gone.
So, Tank and I pulled onto the highway (Route 66, fact is) and headed east. Today was big band day, so the CD player immediately began to blare out "Tuxedo Junction" by Glenn Miller, "I got rhythm" by Benny Goodman, and "Perfidia" by Xavier Cugat. Good stuff!
Another odd thing about the morning was the weather. As I stepped out of the motel door, I was greeted by brilliant sunshine, while it rained quite hard. It's been my experience that New Mexico and Arizona weather can be like that.
It rained that kind of rain off and on all day. Dark clouds moved here and there, lightning every now and then, sunshine for the most part, pelting rain, and then.......it stops for a while. At least it didn't interfere with any of my outings.
Last night I called a couple of my adult children and in one case spoke with my granddaughters as well. Not that I had any important news to discuss, but the call was just to say hello, and that I was doing okay. I'll call the other children during the week. For those of you who don't know about my family, my children range in age from 41 to 29, and my grandchildren range from 2 to 8 years old.
Yesterday, and again today, I saw road signs I'm not accustomed to, and that was "Watch for Elk". We have some elk in Nevada but not enough to have lots of warning signs. Apparently northern Arizona has a good size elk population. I haven't seen any yet.
I spent most of today driving on Route 66, and highways 180, 191 and 264. I used Interstate 40 a bit, but tried to use the so-called "blue highways". They really go out of their way to preserve the memory of Route 66, when it was 'the' main road across the southwest. A number of the gift shops had books about the historic route.
While I was on I40, the speed limit was 75 and that's easier to cruise at than forcing myself to stay at 55 mph. Driving east in the morning had its problem of driving into the sun. But with the rain clouds moving about, they helped shield some of that bright sunshine.
My first tourist stop for the morning was the Meteor Crater. It opens early for tourists - that's the good news. The bad news is that they charge $7.00 for a senior (that's me guys) to see what basically is a hole in the ground. Now, if your into geology or astrology, then maybe you dig (pardon the pun) this stuff.
Apparently, 50000 years ago this big meteorite or cluster of smaller ones created a big bang here in the Arizona desert. It has been judged to have travelled at 30-40,000 mph and when it hit the earth, it then created a hole 700 feet deep and 4000 feet in diameter. They have reconstructed the crash based on the geological content of the crater as well as what was thrown in all directions surrounding the crater.
Anyway, I had not seen a meteorite crater, and now I have. Onward to the Homolovi (pronounced hoe-mole-ovi) ruins. If I was underimpressed by the crater, I was quite unimpressed by these ruins. I realize the archaeologists and anthropologists would like to learn from the ruins which have been uncovered thusfar, and they have been hindered by treasure hunters. But there wasn't much for the ordinary tourist to see and learn. Apparently, in the 13th and 14th centuries, the Indians of this area built their stone pueblo structures, and it's this that is being uncovered. Maybe the next time I pass through, there will be more to see and do.
Leaving Flagstaff headed east, I finally 'ran out' of the Coconino National Forest with all its tall green trees and for a large part of the remainder of the day, all I saw was miles of very wide open desert space. No trees, no mesquite, no junipers, no tall sage brush - just a lot of range grass and low sage plants. The terrain was pretty flat for the most part too. One day it's mountains and the next day it's pretty plain.
But there is still color and life in the desert. I saw lots of different desert flowers today, the prettiest of which was a very small cactus with three yellow flowers almost bigger than the plant itself. And lizards, boy did I see lizards today. Little guys, not much over 6-8 inches. But fun to watch.
Tank noticed the area and commented to me that he thought he had relatives around here. Or was it New Mexico? I'm not sure.
As I drove along, I noticed a lot of dry creeks, river beds and 'washes' as they call them. This is typical Arizona. But, watch out for the flash floods, because those dry areas can fill up very, very quickly. The names of the washes are interesting - Manila Wash, Tanner Wash, and even a Tank Wash. I told (my) Tank, that was just coincidence.
I noticed other signs that amused me as the miles whizzed by. Jackrabbit Road, Geronimo Road, and so on. And speaking of whizzing by, the big trucks certainly like the 75 mph on I40. The Peterbilts, Freightliners and the Kenworths all barreled along. Those big rigs are expensive machines but then the driver lives and works with them.
I used Route 66 to cruise into Winslow, Arizona. It looks like Interstate 40 has left the town to its own devices. I don't know what the local economy is, but from the looks of Winslow, it's not booming. So, I continued on to the town of Holbrook, in search of my oil change for the Explorer.
Several nice things happened in Holbrook. First, I found the Ford dealer and he runs the Valvoline Oil Change place right next door. Got right in, the Ford likes its new oil and I turned down a free car wash just to get back on the road again.
In preparing for the trip, I read about the old courthouse in Holbrook, and this time the AAA tour book had some straight scoop, as they say. The building dates back to the turn of the century, and much of the current museum contents is from those early years. A really good collection, too, I might add.
The old jail is (was) really gruesome. You talk about being thrown in the 'tank' (No, not my Tank, a jail kind of tank) - the old jail was a solid steel enclosure. Four walls 'and' the floor and the ceiling. There was no way a prisoner was going to dig out of that place. The gal at the desk told me the jail was used up until 1976!
Besides the quick oil change and the interesting tour of the old courthouse, I also got a good tip for lunch. A little restaurant that serves mexican dishes attracts so many people, it gets crowded at the noon hour. The food was great. And if you like hot stuff, you would like this place. The salsa had a sting and they gave you more sauce to spice it up if you liked it hotter. My friend, Mardie Gibbs, would love this place.
John Law loves the restaurant, because while I ate there, two state troopers, two sherrif and two plain clothes men came to eat. How can I tell they were in plain clothes? By the big side arms the law officers carry in these parts!
The restaurant was across the street (Route 66, by the way) from the Wigwam Motel. So help me, if you want to sleep in a wigwam, this place has about a dozen of them. I thought about taking my picture with one of them, but that would have been tacky since I didn't stay there. Next time.
The highlight of the day was my visit to the Petrified Forest. This is a national park, so my Golden Age Passport saved me still another admission fee. Story has it that 200 million years ago, there were trees and dinosaurs around here, but geological change turned the trees into petrified rock. It's amazing to see the fossils, and how crystalized the trees have become. There are multiple areas in which you can walk among the rocks, and signs repeatedly tell you its a federal offense to remove any of it, however small a piece you may see.
From the Petrified Forest, I went to the Painted Desert. A very colorful place for a desert. To begin with, there is some green to the landscape, but its the color of the rocks and the small mountains that give the area its unique character. Just like the name suggests, a painted desert.
After that I headed north to Ganado, Arizona to see the Hubbell Trading Post, which was built in the late 1800s and is still actively used today for the selling of goods. The history of the trading post tells of life in the desert and the expanding west of the late 1800s.
A not so pleasant surprise was that there are no motels in Ganado, and the three I called 'up the road apiece' were all booked for the night. So, I'm 30 miles east of where I wanted to end the days part of the Navajo Nation. I noticed that as I drove into this area, I entered the Navajo 'Nation' Forest! Not some U.S. 'national' forest, but a forest that belongs to the Navajo Nation.
I should also mention that went I checked in, and then had supper here at the Navajo Nation Inn, I noticed that I was in the minority. All of the employees are Navajo and most of the patrons were Navajo. Well, what do you expect when you come into someone's neighborhood?
The Navajo Nation Forest, by the way, was pretty. Tall pine trees and green grass all around. The pesky rain was at it again, and even some lightning electrified the sky over the Defiance Plateau (a mountain range just east of Window Rock).
Tomorrow I will drive through the Canyon de Chelly enroute to the four corners area where I'll be able to stand in four states at once (Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico). From there I'm off to Mesa Verde where I'm expecting to see the best cliff dwellings anywhere in the southwest. And after that, Durango, Colorado is the last stop for the day.
Day 10, Tuesday, May 20, 1997
Okay, so it was a bad idea! If I thought yesterday did not go according to plan, boy, this day sure didn't!. Let me explain.
I wound up staying at the Navajo Nation Inn, in Window Rock, Arizona last night, 30 miles east of where I wanted to be. Had I stayed where I had planned to stay, then this morning I would have proceeded north to the Canyon de Chelly (pronounced d'shay).
But, being 30 miles to the east, I noticed on my map that I could get to the canyon by way of a ..... dirt road, entering the canyon from the southeast. So, me, Tank and the Ford Explorer....had an adventure today!
I got up this morning and found that it had rained last night, leaving a fog-like cloud hanging over the area. The morning temperature was 46 degrees at this 7000 foot level. Just north of Window Rock is Fort Defiance, which also has its place in the history of the early west. But because of the dense fog, I was out of luck as far as any picture taking of the fort.
Enroute to the dirt road that would take me into the canyon, I did pass an area to my right, decorated with many American flags. I did a U-turn and went back to see what that was all about. This being the Navajo Nation, what I saw was the veteran's cemetery. The Navajo are a proud people and they honor their war dead in just that way.
It was interesting that many of the burial plots had raised mounds of dirt, decorated with (artificial) flowers and the American flag. There was no one there at that hour (6:30AM) for me to ask about the burials, and why the mound.
You may or may not be aware, but Indians were used extensively during World War II for radio communications work. Two Navajo could talk to each other without the Germans or Japanese being able to understand the language. Interesting!
Well, on to the journey. Instead of travelling west and then north to the Canyon de Chelly, with my four wheel drive Ford Explorer, I found my way to Sawmill, Arizona and there left the paved road. The dirt road was a red clay, and somewhat muddy from last night's rain. I should also point out, that the dirt road was not marked. After about 15 miles of slipping and sliding and bumping (the Ford handled the road quite well, but Tank and I did not), well, I gave up and turned around.
The negative here is that I lost over two hours of time and 70 total miles, retracing my path and finally going west and then north to the canyon. The good news is that the CD player kept us entertained with the likes of "Back in the saddle again", "Bury me not on the lone prarie" and "The streets of Laredo".
The canyon is a great place to visit. If you have your own four wheel drive vehicle, they permit you to drive on the canyon floor. If you don't have one, you can hire one, or hire horses to ride through the canyon. A neat place to spend a vacation. But after my early morning experience, I decided to stay on the high road and view things from the south rim above. Fantastic views of huge red sandstone rock mountains!
The road and the park were not crowded. For that matter, the entire day was light on traffic and tourists. Fine with me. I should mention that when I stopped at the Canyon visitor's center, someone noticed my Explorer and all the mud on it and commented "Someone's been playing in the mud". I wouldn't call it playing necessarily!
The canyon floor has a river flowing thros been playing in the mud". I wouldn't call it playing necessarily!
The canyon floor has a river flowing through it, and it was green with trees and grass. Yet, on the mesa above, it was pretty desert like. That shows you what water can do! I let Tank out of the car at one view point, and he enjoyed looking at what is called Spider Rock.
My sunglasses continue to give me great views of all that I have seen. I mention this because, sadly, I do not have filters for my cameras and I think my recording of this trip is going to miss (lose) some color that otherwise could have been captured. A lesson to be learned for my next trip.
After my visit to the Canyon de Chelly, I continued north and then northeast to the one spot in the United States where you can stand on four states at the same time. At Four Corners, like everyone else, I stood on 'the' spot, and had my picture taken by another person. Not a big deal, but I can at least say "I did it".
My son Mark once said "Why would anyone want to go there? There's nothing there!". Well, let me tell you.......there's nothing there.
Another comment about my sun glasses. They enabled me to see things on the horizon while driving that perhaps I would have missed, or at least be able to see early than without them. For instance, as I looked at the cloud cover, I could see 'sheets' of rain falling in various places.
The pesky rain continued today, and whereas it didn't interfere with most of my touring, it did hamper me a little bit at Mesa Verde. More on that in just a moment.
On entering Colorado, I tried to arrive at an early impression Now, I have been to Colorado a number times on business but during this trip, I want to characterize, for myself at least, the profile, the image of each state as I enter them.
Colorado is certainly a "Rocky Mountain High", as John Denver would say. The mountains are huge and have their own distinct attributes, different than any other state. Colorado is 'the west' and has its Indian and Spanish influences here and there. But it's modern too!
The first views of Colorado, entering the state from this southwestern corner, showed me the granduer of the mountains. If I were to venture north from here, I would pass through the area known as the San Juan Mountains. I'm told that this is among the most scenic mountain highway in the entire U.S.. I'm also told that one had better be a good mountain road driver because it winds around and takes you to high elevations.
But, I'm not headed north. At Cortez, I 'hung a right' and went east towards Durango, but stopping first at the Mesa Verde National Park. This place is awesome and had things that I did not expect, and things that I did expect. First of all, the elevation. When you enter this park, you will climb to elevations between 6000-9000 feet. You had best be happy with this kind of mountain driving. The road takes you to the top of the mesa, and from one of many vantage points you can climb down to view the cliff dwellings, which is what the park is noted for. They are fabulous!
Before describing my day at Mesa Verde, I should also say a bit more about entering Colorado. First, spring has arrived, so the trees and the hills are showing green. I took pictures of many flowers; daisies, sun flowers, etc. I passed more wigwams, by the way, so there are many places to have your picture taken, if that turns you on.
I saw working farms as well, something that Nevada, Utah and Arizona did not show much of. I don't know what the crops were, but the Colorado farms had tilled soil and sprouts coming up.
Mesa Verde? Well, not only do you drive to higher elevation, but I didn't realize how deep into the park one had to drive to begin to see the preserved cliff dwellings. It's 19 miles back into the park on the windy mountain road. But, the pleasure is at the end of the road.
I chose as my primary sight to see, the Cliff Palace. If you have ever seen pictures of Mesa Verde, chances are it's the Cliff Palace you saw. One term used a lot around here is "Anasazi", meaning ancient people. These cliff dwellings were built and occupied by a community of people, who farmed the surrounding areas, as well as producing the pottery that has come to be unique to the southwest.
I climbed down to the Cliff Palace as part of a ticketed tour, and that was good because you get to hear what the park ranger has to say. It also enabled me to take pictures close up, as well as from above. I'm enjoying this trip, no doubt about it.
I visited other cliff dwelling sites such as Balcony House. I stopped at the gift shop to do the touristy things too, such as buying post cards for the kids, and books for me. A great visit.
Well, Durango was still 50 miles away, and the end of an extra long day, due to my unproductive beginning. But I'll remember Canyon de Chelly, the Four Corners and Mesa Verde, not the dirt road and the mud. Tomorrow, it's on to Santa Fe and things along the way.
Day 11, Wednesday, May 21, 1997
Rain, rain, go away, come again........after my trip! I supposed it had to happen one day, and today was my first 'rain out'. I did manage to stop at the Continental Divide, see the old narrow gauge trains at Chama, New Mexico, watch the Rio Chama move a lot of water, and I even got to see much of the Bandelier National Monument. But my visit to the education oriented Ghost Ranch was a wash out, and I haven't even bother to go into Sante Fe to see the sights downtown. Maybe it will stop raining later this evening.
My sister-in-law, Dolores Steinhilber, is quite religious and I asked if she had any pull with the man upstairs. She said I had to have faith. What I want is dry weather! So much for sister-in-laws. Where are they, when you need them?
The day got started quietly. I helped a guy get his car started, and I had a nice continental breakfast. Leaving Durango, Colorado and headed east on highway 160, most of the traffic was inbound to the city, so it was an easy drive. But the rain I call 'pesky' started and all day it either came down in torrents or it piddled just to annoy you.
The drive from Durango to Pagosa and from there south to the New Mexico state line was an easy drive with rolling hills and the San Juan National Forest to look at. At the state line, the pretty pine trees ended and when the Carson Forest started, it was a mixture of some pine, juniper, and lots of sage brush mixed in.
I saw quite a bit of livestock today, but within fenced farms or ranches. Not the open range situation that I saw in much of Arizona. Southwestern Colorado is certainly more populated than the desert country of Arizona, Utah and Nevada, so I found myself going through small towns every so many miles. That's okay, I was in no hurry on the so-called 'blue highway'.
The rivers, creeks and streams in Colorado were all flowing this morning. I can only assume that the winter snows have been melting and pushing the water downhill. There is still some snow on the peaks north of Durango.
The state highway (as opposed to an Interstate road) in Colorado didn't seem as good as the state highways in Arizona and Utah. In the desert states, the state highways were almost the quality of an Interstate highway in terms of the condition of the pavement, and the width of the road.
Seeing trees and flowers along the way is always pleasant. I had a note from someone saying/asking if it was really birch that I saw the other day. Well, the bright white bark, with black cracks makes me think it was birch, but maybe it was aspen. I have aspen at my home and the bark is a darker color. In any case, spring has sprouted a lot of pretty leaves to look at, in reverse of fall color.
I began to see signs for wilderness areas. A friend of mine, Carl Howard, lives south of Denver and his property his next to federal land which is considered a wilderness area. What this means is no motor powered vehicles. If you want to go into these areas, it comes down to two things; either you back pack it or bring your stuff in on horse or mule. And what you bring into the area, you're expected to take back out with you. Leave nothing but footprints, someone once said.
The style of houses in Colorado is different than other areas. Not just any one house, but the fact that there are so many log cabins, houses with log siding, chalets, houses with steep A-frame roofs, etc. Remember, this is ski country and the snow can get pretty deep sometimes.
This is also Ute Indian country. As you might expect, when you're in the Navajo Nation, you see signs for their arts and crafts and when you're in Ute country, you see sign for Ute this and that. I have not bought any Indian arts and crafts. If I start buying things along the way, I won't have any room in my Explorer before I get home.
As I passed through Pagosa, I got a favorable impression of the area. Pagosa and its neighbor, Pagosa Lakes, present a good looking image. Golf courses, condos for the skier or tourist, and a clean town in general.
Another observation that I didn't have in Nevada, Arizona or Utah (at least what I have seen this trip) is that of barns. You know, those big, bulky buildings, many times painted red with a sign on the side. Well, here in Colorado, you have working farms and ranches and they need the barns in addition to those roof-only structures which are used for things like keeping hay dry. I know I'll see more barns east of the Rockies, but that will come later in my trip.
The two highways I used this morning in Colorado were not 'fast' roads. Speed limites were 40, 50, 55 and that's about it. And with the gentle curves, you couldn't safely go much faster anyway. When I crossed the state line into New Mexico, the valleys got longer and wider, and the speed limit higher (65). As with yesterday, there wasn't much traffic, so there was little concern. The motel operator last night said, 'just wait until the tourists get here'. He didn't count me as a tourist, I guess.
I saw more yellow flowers today. Daisies and sun flowers, and another flower that covered many fields in the valley, that I liken to the rape plant which is seen in much of southern England. The rape plant there is grown for the oil that it produces. I also saw blue flowers that looked like bluebonnets. In Texas, April is bluebonnet time.
I stopped to take a picture of the state historical marker for the Continental Divide. In simple terms, if rain falls east of here, it flows to the Atlantic, and west of here, to the Pacific.
With so many mountains here in the west you see the geological strata many times. I was trying to think what that reminded me of, and I finally decided it was like looking at the layers of a good lasagna. With the rain dampening the windshield, Tank was content just to listen to the CD player. In recognition of Colorado, I loaded up "Rocky Mountain High" and for all the desert we've been driving through "Home on the Range" seemed appropriate. Tank enjoyed "Frankie and Johnny" but he really wants more country music.
I have promised Tank that tomorrow will listen to the likes of "I'm moving on" with Hank Snow, "The wild side of life" by Hank Thompson, and "Let me be your teddy bear" by Elvis Presley. Tank thought there should be another version, "Let me be your armadillo" but I didn't think Nashville would go for that.
The first notable town in New Mexico, coming in from the north on highway 84 is Chama. I like the character of a lot of buildings there. A saloon that looks like a western saloon. Even the local drug store looks like saloon! Chama hosts the longest and highest narrow gauge railway in the U.S. (the sign says). I stopped to take pictures of the train yard and a whole assortment of trains and cars. There were switchers, snow rotary plows, old pullman cars and so on. If you're a train buff, you should plan a visit to Chama.
The heavy, cloudy sky that greeted me when I began the morning stayed with me all day, drizzling here and pouring there. I didn't use my sun glasses today - who needed them?
I stopped at a place called the Ghost Ranch, which is run by the Forest Service, principally as an educational facility. They do have caged birds and animals on display, like a zoo, but they also have museum type exhibits which were quite good. I wanted to take video pictures but I have yet to learn how to manage an umbrella and a camera at the same time. Included in the 'zoo' were animals such as a bobcat and a fox, and the birds included a bald eagle, a hawk, and a horned owl.
My last stop this afternoon before conceding to the rain, was a National Monument called Bandelier. Like Mesa Verde, it is a park devoted to the preservation of cliff dwellings found there. I'm biased in the I think the Cliff Palace and other dwellings I saw yesterday at Mesa Verde are the best there is, so Bandelier was nice but not as impressive. One good thing about Bandelier is that visitors are more free to climb in and about the ruins.
There is lots to think about when you see the cliff dwellings such as Mesa Verde and Bandelier. First, why did these Anasazi people (ancient people, over 800 years ago) choose to live in and on the side of mountains? One theory is the kind of shelter it provided and secondly, it left the mesa (table top) land for cultivation of crops. The construction of these dwellings is also intriguing; Mesa Verde being largely stone masonry, whereas Bandelier has many caves literally carved out of the soft stone of the mountain.
Well, tonight I'll have lots of time for a good meal, maybe read or watch television and hope for sunny weather for me to venture north to the arty town of Taos, New Mexico and the western life in Colorado towns like Alamosa.
Day 12, Thursday, May 22, 1997
Rain or no rain, I'm not going to sit around and do nothing. So, I was up early, as usual, full breakfast at 6:00AM and into Santa Fe's downtown area I went by 6:30AM.
In spite of the pesky drizzle, I had a ball. The city center was still asleep (I don't know what time people come to work around here) and parking was free (because the lots weren't open yet). You have to realize that city center of Santa Fe is quite unique. No modern office buildings, but rather (almost) everything is in the old spanish, adobe, pueblo style of building. Great to look at and go in and out.
I did the normal touristy things; Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi, Mission of San Miguel of Santa Fe, Palace of Governors, Loretto Chapel, the Plaza and the State Capitol.
The morning was not all pleasure though. Yesterday's visit to Bandelier National Monument apparently enabled me to get flea-like bites all over both legs. They itched pretty bad until late today when I stopped at a pharmacy to get some benadryl gel to rub on.
Last night was quite damp and cool because of the rain this area has been having. Temperature when Tank and I got started this morning was around 51 degrees. I thought the drizzle and temperature were bad, but it got worse later in the day, with the temperature going to 45 degrees at the Great Sand Dunes and there it absolutely poured. More about that later.
As I was leaving Santa Fe, I passed the Santa Fe National Cemetery where military dead are buried. It is an impressive burial ground with due respect to those buried there. Rows and rows of identical white markers. I stopped to take pictures to remember the image.
For the first eleven days of my trip, I have been wearing shorts. Not today though. Long pants and a sweatshirt over my T-shirt. I felt the chill as I stopped to take other pictures, such as a typical residential area with most homes being of the pueblo style. When in pueblo country, do as the pueblos do (or something like that).
The CD player is still on a country flavor (I have to keep my travelling companion happy, but tomorrow it will be something else). Hank Snow belted out "I've been everywhere man" (which we have) and Roger Miller sang in his unique style, "Dang me".
I left Santa Fe and headed north to Taos, an arty community. For those of you into the art thing, Georgia O'Keefe lived and worked here at one time. Enroute, I passed or was passed by vans pulling trailers of rubber rafts. With many large volume rivers around here, rafting is a popular sport. More on that later too.
Along highway 68, the Embudo River parallels the highway, and after seeing how turbulent the water was, I had to stop and take some pictures. No sooner I get back underway, when the Embudo River went in one direction, and the highway now paralleled the Rio Grande. Take note, that's "grand-a" and not the Rio Grand which is south on the border of Mexico. The Rio Grande also was moving a tremendous amount of water. I wondered what it would be like to raft that river and I saw just how, later.
Unlike previous days where the on and off drizzle was mixed with bright sunshine, there was no sunshine today. Along the way, I saw a teepee and drum store (I kid you not!), and when I pulled in and stepped into their muddy parking lot, that was the end of that curiosity. Back onto the highway I went.
I spent time in Taos, checking out the shops along the main street and in the plaza. Being an art colony, there are a number of 'museums' which are really art galleries, where you can buy what's on display. Like the curio shops, the art doesn't come cheap. This may look like a quaint little pueblo kind of town, but there are big bucks here.
I stopped at a major pueblo just north of Taos, but again it was so muddy that I decided not to visit the place. A lot of other people however were out of their cars and seeing the sights. A classic pueblo building is square-ish, probably the walls built with stone and then plastered smooth with an adobe, stucco-like finish. The ceilings are some number of logs, often protruding out the side of the structure, and covered with probably an earthern composite.
After Taos, I went to the Rio Grande River Gorge. Fabulous! Not only is the bridge over the river a remarkable piece of civil engineering, but the view is fantastic. The gorge is about 700 feet deep, and luck was with me today. I parked the car and walked to the center of the bridge, and while there taking pictures, three separate rafters came down the river. I was able to photograph them with my video camera and got some interesting shots with my zoom lens when they went through the rapids directly under the bridge. Wow!!!
I also saw and photgraphed the remains of an automobile that was halfway down the side of the gorge. I can only assume that it crashed and burned, but whether it was an accident or someone did it for 'kicks', I have no way of knowing.
Continuing north towards Colorado, I saw a number of interesting sights. In one area, I saw several clusters of homes 'buried' in the ground, with only their 'picture windows' and roof visible. Each home had solar panels nearby. The windows, by the way, were facing south.
And speaking of solar panels, further on I saw another odd sight. A mobile home not only had solar panels outside but also a very large pile of firewood. One has to assume that they may not have electricity wired to the home and no heat other than a wood stove of some kind. Not me. I like my insulated home with city services.
The terrain in northern New Mexico, on route 285, had large valleys and huge mountains in the distance. With so much hillside extending up to the mountains, the spring range grass looked somewhat like felt on a card table, or velvet.
Just before crossing the stateline into Colorado, I passed San Antonio Peak with is almost 11,000 feet high. The top of this mountain was shrouded with clouds and the temperature in this area was 49 degrees.
As I got into Colorado, a number of things caught my eye. In a small town called Conejos, a sign said that its church was the oldest in Colorado. I took pictures of the very impressive brick church called Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe.
Further into Colorado, I had plans to visit a National Monument called Pikes Stockade, which was built back in the early 1800s. After driving for ten miles or so, four of which being a dirt road (don't I ever learn?), I got to the Stockade only to learn it's not yet open for the tourist season. Hmmmmm!
My stopping place for the day is Alamosa, Colorado, which sits in the San Luis Valley, with the San Juan mountains to the west, and the Sangre de Cristo range to the east. I mention this, because one of the sights I planned to see is the Grand Sand Dunes National Monument, supposedly the largest dune area in the U.S..
I'm told that millions of years ago, the Rio Grande flowed through this area but then somehow rerouted itself leaving behind silt and sand which became the basis for the sand dunes. Southwesterly winds prevail and when the wind could not lift the sand up and over the mountains in the northeast corner of the valley, the dunes were formed. I had visions of playing in the dunes today, with the sun beating on me, like some Sahara Desert movie. Ha!
After checking into my motel, I had lunch and even got a haircut, hoping the pesky rain might finally stop. Instead the rain increased. But I came this far, and by golly, I'm going to see the dunes.
The natural slope of the land at the dunes is to the southwest, and with all the rain which has fallen, and the downpour which came this afternoon, the sand dunes were hardly a desert. A normal trickle they called the Medano Creek today had torrents of water, more than a flash flood in some gully or wash. A park ranger told me that sometimes people get caught out on the desert when a heavy rain hits and then can't get back to the parking lot.
Crazy or not, I got out of my car, covered my head and cameras with my umbrella, and I took pictures of the dunes (actually a fast moving rapid of water). But, look at it this way; this trip is an adventure! Remember what I said early - at least one interesting event per day. My cup runneth over!
Coming back to my motel in Alamosa, I was driving west and looking at the San Juan mountains. Imagine a dense layer of clouds at ground level, extending for miles north and south, but above the clouds stood the peaks of San Juan. Not quite a sunset picture (what sun?), but you get the idea. Mother Nature at work.
So, I have stopped at the pharmacy for my benadryl and I have eaten, so I'm set for the evening. Tomorrow I head further north into Colorado, with my major destinations being the Royal Gorge and then Pueblo.
Day 13, Friday, May 23, 1997
Crazy, that's what it is! I looked out of my motel room this morning before the sun came up and I could see stars in the sky. My reaction was that it would be a clear day. It started out that way, but soon after I was on the road, I was met with very dense fog which lasted for over 20 miles. Then the day did improve, but late today, after I finished all the day's activities, it poured rain, absolutely poured. At least I did my touring in sunshine.
After my continental breakfast, I packed up the Ford and headed north from Alamosa, aiming for Salida and then on to Canon City and ending the day in Pueblo, Colorado. The sun did come up and shone brilliantly.
As I mentioned in yesterday's diary, Alamosa is in the middle of a very large valley called San Luis. As I looked to the east, where the Great Dunes are located, I saw the Sangre de Cristo mountains, poking their snow covered peaks above a large layer of clouds at their base.
The sun sparkled off the mountains and the clouds and I thought I would not be impacted by foul weather again. I settled in for sightseeing drive to Salida, and began to notice things in the area. Like other areas of the U.S., the Colorado countryside has its share of prosperous farms and ranches and some not so prosperous.
I saw a lot of 'junk' cars and that made me wonder why people don't get rid of them to junk yards or companies that deal in auto parts. The 65 mph speed limit caused the miles to whiz by. I sailed through some one gas station towns before I realized it was a town.
And then the fog came. Those clouds that covered the base of the mountains? Well, it seemed there was a big cloud in the middle of the valley, and that slowed me down for at least 20 miles. By the time I got to Poncha Pass, south of Salida, I rose to 9000 feet above sea level, and left the clouds behind.
Tank, not being a driver, was content just listening to the CD player. When he heard "Don't cry for me Argentina" it reminded him to tell me that he had applied for the Armadillo student exchange program with Brazil, which will enable him to visit with my friends Rui Natal and Heinz Klein. Rather than respond to this nonsense, I asked him why the chicken crossed the road? He said he didn't know, so I told him it was to show armadillos how to do it without getting hit. (For those of you not familiar with armadillos, when caught in the lights of a car, their reaction is to literally jump in the air, which of course is the wrong move, and it results in one less armadillo).
The other music today included such songs as "Summertime" from Porgy and Bess, "One" from the Chorus Line and "76 trombones" from The Music Man.
Turning east after reaching Salida, gave me a pleasant surprise and an unplanned activity for the day. The Arkansas River flows in this area, swirling through valleys, canyons and gorges like the Bighorn Sheep Canyon and Echo Canyon. The river is wide, deep and robust. A lot of water moved through this river today.
And on the water were white water rafters. There are lots of outfitters in Colorado which specialize in taking people down various rivers, and the Arkansas looks like a river with a lot of variety. Soft, rolling sections, where you just casually bob up and down. But a bit later, the curves and the rapids make for an interesting ride. Novices paddle this way and that way, probably not doing much good, and hopefully you have a good guide to truly steer you right.
The highway going through the canyons, paralleling the river, did not have too many places to pull off the road, but I did find a few advantageous spots. I was able to take video pictures of a number of rafts and the turbulence they went through on their way down the river. I even saw one kayak, and boy did he have a tough time managing that river today.
The outfitters provide life preservers and helmets. Both are designed to provide safety for the rafters should they fall out of the raft. I'm sure the people got cold and wet today, but also, I'll bet they had fun.
In addition to watching and taping the rafters, I noticed other things along the river today. Where there's water, nearby ranches thrive. The grass was greener, more livestock grazed and the ranches or farms looked prosperous, as mentioned earlier.
During one of my stops along the river, I let Tank out of the car and he sat on a rock trying to imagine what it would be like for an armadillo to try white water rafting. I took a picture, just for the record.
My main objective for the day was to visit the Royal Gorge and its suspension bridge. The one lane bridge, with wooden slats as the road, was built in 1929 and improved in 1983. It claims to be the highest suspension in the world, hovering 1053 feet above the Arkansas River at the bottom of the gorge. An impressive site to be sure.
I considered entering the park area from the south, such that I might drive across the bridge, but I decided against it. I just did what hundreds of other cars did. Enter from the north, park your car, and walk over the bridge. There is an aerial tram to take people from one side of the gorge to the other also.
There were lots of schools kids there today, some appearing to work on school papers, but most seem to be on a school outing with chaperones. Oh, well, it is getting close to the end of the school year.
I mentioned the other day that I was going to look at license plates to see how many states are represented by tourists such as me. Well, in my the five states I have visited (Nevada, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Colorado) I have seen 33 of the 50 states represented. I'm going to keep a sharp lookout for the ones I have yet to see (MT, ND, SD, NE, MN, AR, LA, SC, IL, WV, DE, MD, VA, CT, RI, NH & HI).
I spent quite a bit of time watching the rafters and also quite a bit of time at the Royal Gorge. On leaving the Royal Gorge, I chose to take 'a road less travelled', namely the Skyline Drive above Canon City. I don't know who decided to build this thing, but it really is an experience.
Imagine a 500 foot mountain, which is really a ridge, like an upside down letter "V". Somebody paved a one lane road on the very top of this ridge, and the ridge is only about three car widths. I would like to describe myself as male, 220 pounds, 6'1", five kids, served in the Navy, etc, etc, etc. But, put me on top of this narrow ridge and I moved 'very' cautiously!
It was an interesting ride, and with only one other car that I saw, I stopped several times, right in the one lane road, to take video pictures of just where it was that I was at. Wait until my kids see this set of vacation pictures!
When I got down off the skyline drive, it deposited me in Canon City, with no good directions as to how to find my way back to the highway. Thanks to the compass on my Ford Explorer, it pointed me to the east and Pueblo.
I saw lots of deer again today. At midday, I would have thought the deer would be resting, but no, they were out looking to see what us humans had to offer.
The drive to Pueblo showed me a stark landscape. Flat, no trees, and an increasing population. I'm not familiar with the economics of the area, so I don't know what it is that brought people here. My atlas tells me the population of Pueblo is about 100,000.
After checking in to my hotel and freshing up, I took off to see the so-called "B24 Museum" at the Pueblo airport. That's an odd name for the facility because the building and the field had all sorts of military aircraft and memorabilia. I found the B29 most interesting because my oldest brother, John, served in the Army Air Corp during WWII in the Pacific, and was a gunner on B29s.
At the end of today, the downpour came. It rained and rained and rained. And after an hour or so, the clouds moved on and the sun came back out. Who knows what tomorrow will bring. Me, I'm headed for the top of Pike's Peak (elevation 14,000 feet above sea level).
Day 14, Saturday, May 24, 1997
Today was fabulous! I spent the morning getting to the top of Pike's Peak and the experience of being at 14,000 feet above sea level is something everyone should try.
Being in Pueblo, Colorado for the night, made it a short trip this morning to head north to Colorado Springs, and then veer northwest to Manitou Springs. There I had an 8:00AM reservation for the Cog Railway. By all means, if you consider this kind of an outing, you must have a reservation.
Manitou Springs is a neat Colorado mountain town. It has shops and restaurants and other things a tourist can do, such as visiting the Garden of the Gods which I did later in the day. Temperature this morning was in the 40s in Pueblo, in the 30s at Manitou Springs, and by the time I got to the top of Pike's Peak, there it was 19 degrees (but worth it).
I must compliment myself on planning clothing for this trip, because I had a good assortment of clothes to choose from as I put on layer upon layer for the ascent to the summit. I have a Texas Rangers baseball cap with me, but I could have used something warmer for walking aroung the top of the mountain.
I was up an on the road before 6:30AM to drive the 40 miles to Manitou Springs. The speed limit on I24 was 75 mph and on highway 24 it was 55 mph so there was no difficulty being on time for the first railway train of the morning.
For anyone who has not been to this part of Colorado, you have to understand that to the immediate west you see the Rocky Mountains rise to the sky, but to the east, it's 'flat as a pancake'. As I begin my drive north, I could see Pike's Peak rise above all the other mountains, and that's seeing the mountain from 30 miles away. Great view!
I noticed a Burlington train, busy at work on this Saturday morning pulling a string of about 100 flat bed cars, loaded with truck trailers. U.S. railroads may not be doing much business with passenger trains but they sure are moving a lot of freight these days. Early this week, and to the west, I saw Santa Fe Railroad trains doing the same thing.
There were a few hot air balloons in the Colorado Springs sky. It's that time of year I guess where many communities will have their hot air balloons races and such. Nice to look at. As I entered the Colorado Springs area, the early morning sunshine gave way to a gray blanket of cloulds.
The cog railway train is modern, neat and clean. It has large pull down windows, either for fresh air and/or better photography as the train climbs or descends the steep slope of Pike's Peak. I lucked out with my reservation and had a window seat. My video camera and my 35mm camera had a great day.
The time table for this morning was basically an hour to get to the top of the mountain, we had an hour to sight see from the peak, and then an hour to get back down. The trip up and down gives ample opportunity to take pictures of the mountains, streams and such. The hour at the peak, also is ample time to walk around and take in the view from each side, as well as taking pictures. There is a gift shop, coffee shop and restrooms at the peak, and all were used by the visitors on my train.
The oxygen level at the peak is about 30 percent less than at the base of the mountain, so you have to be wise and not over do yourself. The peak has been used by various olympic athletes for training purposes. The Olympic Training Center is in Colorado Springs, by the way.
The cog railway to the summit was originally built in 1890 and then improved in 1938, 1964 and 1976. The $21.00 fare, I think, it well worth it for the view, the experience and the comfort. I sat next to a gal from Madison, Wisconsin and it was good chatting with her on the ride up and down.
Returning to the base at Manitou Springs, I then visited the Garden of the Gods, which is a well laid out park, with circular roads taking you around the large stone mountains that project upwards like some religious shrine. I stopped at several places to take pictures.
By comparison, of course, the Garden cannot compare to larger parks such as the Grand Canyon or Zion, but none the less, the Garden is a nice place to visit. And, it's free. It is probably best viewed at sunrise and sunset, to bring out the red color of the rocks.
After lunch, I drove a bit further north of Colorado Springs in order to visit the Air Force Academy. As I approached the entrance, I saw big signs warning that graduation traffic must use a certain exit. My first reaction was, I picked a poor day to see the academy. But, to my surprise, the traffic control was excellent. Graduation traffic was routed one way and other tourists another way.
I was able to stop at the Visitor's Center, see the displays there, and browse in their gift shop. From there to the famous chapel that has been photographs thousands of times. Well, I photograph it some more. I toured the campus cluster of administrative, educational and dormitory buildings. Very nice, very modern. Lastly, I saw the athletic grounds which are very well designed and equipped
During all of today's driving, the CD player entertain me and Tank with songs like "Ah! Sweet mystery of life" (Naughty Marietta), "Vilia" (Merry Widow), and the "Drinking song" (Student Prince). I kept a lookout for license plates today, adding Virginia and New Hampshire to my list. Only 14 remain to be seen and I'm not out of Colorado yet.
The visit to the Air Force Academy got Tank to babbling again. He wondered if the Air Force ever considered a flying armadillo? Needless to say, I ignored him, again.
Before stopping for the day at my friends, Carl and Gay Howard, in Sedalia, Colorado (about 20 miles south of Denver), I stopped to buy more film and 'supplies'. I'm looking forward to a sociable visit with old freinds this weekend, so I probably won't have much to say in the way of a travelog. But then, I'm sure to find something to record in my diary. Till tomorrow then.
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